Pierre Huet and his membership
Image: The New Penelope membership card of Erik Slutsky, 1967. Erik Slutsky collection. Courtesy of Erik Slutsky
Transcription: New Penelope / 378 Sherbrooke Street West / MEMBERSHIP CARD / Eric Slutsky / Must be presented at entrance / Approved
Credit: ARCMTL collection. Interview was conducted in Montreal on February 6, 2021 with Pierre Huet by Louis Rastelli, Director of ARCMTL.
Duration: 0:47 min
Pierre Huet was a songwriter for the 1970s Montreal rock band Beau Dommage, author of the book En 67 tout était beau, and fan of The New Penelope. In this interview he recalls making the most of his New Penelope membership during the summer of 1967.
Here is the English translation of the original interview held in French.
Transcription:
Pierre Huet: One day I saw an ad for the Penelope in some underground Montreal paper, OK?, that was announcing the Mothers of Invention show, OK? I had no idea who it was, but I said, “OK. I’ll go and see that.” So I went to the Penelope on Sherbrooke, obviously. I’d never been to the old Penelope. It was my first time. And I went to see the Mothers, and that’s when I discovered an entire world.
I went back the next day and got my membership card. Because, I don’t know if you’ve heard of it, there was a membership card that was 30 bucks, I think, that gave you full access all the time. And, as I was going, the following summer, to do some hitchhiking in Europe, I said to myself, “I’m not spending any more money. All my leisure time, I’ll spend it at the Penelope.” That was my investment. So that’s why I was there all the time, all the time, all the time.